2016 Volvo S60 T5 Inscription FWD (1146)

This is the 2016 Volvo S60 T5 Inscription FWD 4-door sedan. Volvo has always been a great conservative family car and increasingly it has become a car of distinction in design as well as quality.

You’ve got to admire the marketing departments who develop how the consumer perceives the brand. Family and friends tell me they see the Volvo brand as a car that implies responsible owners and drivers. Surely the serious family person is more concerned on how a car fits the need of the family as opposed to driver’s desire to look cool. How often do you hear someone say “you’d look good in that car”? Better you’d consider how good you make the car look.

Simply put Volvo is always a delightful driving experience and one of my favorites. And this car delivers better than average performance as well as fuel economy which is among the best in class.

Styling:

Volvo, for as long as I can remember, has given the impression it is a safe car to drive. Today Subaru is trying to establish the same perception for their brand. It works for me. I want a car from a company who emphasizes safety.

Volvo styling is also very identifiable on the highway. The grill has that diagonal chrome strip on it that is unique to Volvo. That is also the case with very large Volvo commercial trucks and that diagonal effect is unmistakably Volvo.

Fit and Finish:

Volvo is very attentive to the finer details of assembly. Well done.

Cost:

Competitive in class.

Conveniences and comfort:

I’m a real stickler on ease of use of any feature and I was mildly disappointed that the electronics were not as intuitive as they could be, of course, in my opinion. I know I could adapt but I’d rather see improvement by the company.

This is just a general comment and surely only a suggestion to Volvo to look at other brands more closely to make things more user friendly and intuitive.

I also think they could have done a better job with storage, or cubby-holes and catch-all’s for the driver in particular.

But something that doesn’t need improvement is the Adaptive or Smart Cruise Control. That feature is among the best on any car. This is one of the better adaptations of the feature in that you can literally stop and start in traffic without touching the gas or brake. It is smooth and sure. For me it takes the stress out of driving.

Consumer Recommendations:

When you consider the cost of auto ownership most people look closely. Owning an automotive repair shop for more than a decade I can say we didn’t see all that many Volvos in for repair. But below is an interesting list of cars we did see a lot of for repairs.